Multi-game system

ABSTRACT

A game system for children for simulating polo, hockey, soccer and other games by means of hobby horses and auxiliary devices. Stability of the hobby horse structure is obtained by a wide base construction of the supporting frame. Additional safety factors are incorporated into the game system by having the hooves of the hobby horse turned inwardly; elimination of sharp edges; utilization of light-weight construction material; and supporting T-sections within the horse for structural strength. Maneuverability of the hobby horse is achieved by means of swivelable casters and by means of greater leg room for the game participants. The height of the hobby horses are adjustable by means of telescopic support posts. The game system also provides for vertical and horizontal stacking of the hobby horses for storage in a small area. A pair of hollow posts extend laterally through front and rear sections of the hobby horse body and engage the supporting T-sections. A stacking rack comprising horizontal posts attached to a frame is provided. The horizontal posts fit into the hollow posts to support the hobby horses.

United States Patent 11 1 1111 3,730,524 Green 51 Ma 1 1973 [54]MULTI-GAME SYSTEM Primary Examiner-Anton O. Oechsle [76] Inventor:Martin Green, 243 Franklin Turn- Ass'smm ExaminerfpaulE'shaplm p Mahwah,Att0rneyConstant1ne MIChalOS [22] Filed: Apr. 7, 1971 57 ABSTRACT p NOJ131,983 A game system for children for simulating polo, hockey, soccerand other games by means of hobby 52 U.S. c1. ..273/85 R, 272/52.5,280/8702 R hmses and auxiliary devices Stability of the hobby 51 Int.Cl. ..A63f 7/06 horse Structure is Obtained by a Wide base Construc-[58] Field of Search ..273/85 R, 94 R, 1 R, of the Supporting frameAdditional safety factors 273/127; 272/52, 525 531, 5122803702 v areincorporated into the game system by having the v R, 8702 w hooves ofthe hobby horse turned inwardly; elimination of sharp edges; utilizationof light-weight con- [56] References Citedv struction material; andsupporting T-sections within the horse for structural strength.Maneuverability of UNITED STATES PATENTS the hobby horse is achieved bymeans of swivelable 1,499 628 1924 Al and by means of greater leg momfor the game 145461606 Z1927 sg 5245: participants. The height of thehobby horses are 311- 2,103,428 12 1937 Lutes ..273/127B jumble y meansof telescopic Support P The 1,468,993 9/1923 Converse ..272/52 gamesystem also provides for vertical and horizontal 503,979 8/1893'Normington et a1. 272/52 stacking of the hobby horses for storage in asmall 2,993,530 7/1961 Little et a1. 1 ..272/52 area A pair of hollowposts extend laterally through 1,679,659 8/1928 Hassl ar1 et a1...273/85 R from and rear Sections of the hobby horse body and 2,997,2998/1961 I W1lk1ns,Jr ..272/52X g g the supporting T Sections A Stackingrack FOREIGN PATENTS 0R APPLICATIONS comprising l'lOI'lZOlltQl pOSlSattached [0 a frame 18 pIlO- I I vided. The horizontal posts fit intothe hollow posts to 742,697 12/1955 Great Britain ..'.272/53.1 'supporth h bb horses 612,804 11/1926 France .280/87.02 W

1 5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures gozozsew, 1o v t Q QQQQQZ: 62

- wwooefl 64 WooW 5 o v QQAQ QA v 38 1 39 N I 5 22" 3% 58 "24 60 8 (F452 1 28 l) I 80 Q -36 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of theInvention In general, this invention relates to games and particularlyto games that are played by two opposing teams within a game area andpermitting the game area to be quickly converted for other recreationalpurposes.

More particularly, this multi-game system for children simulates polo,hockey, soccer and other games by means of hobby horses and auxiliarydevices, provides safety features to protect the game participants, anda storage structure for the hobby horses utilizes a small storage areaand provides for a flexible game area that integrates this multi-gamesystem.

2. Description of Prior Art Heretofore, hobby horses have not beenconsidered for competitive games by schools and other institutions dueto safety, cost and storage reasons. Moveable hobby horses have beenused by children on an individual basis merely to simulate the riding ofa horse, while a collection of hobby horses have been used in a fixedrelation to each other, such as a merry-go-round or in carnival rides.The present invention overcomes these problems by providing a multi-gamesystem that possesses improtant safety features, has low cost factors,and minimizes the storage area for hobby horses utilized in thesecompetitive games.

SUM MARY OF THE INVENTION The invention simulates adult games such aspolo, hockey and soccer by means of hobby horses and auxiliary devices.A major object of this invention is to provide children with theenthusiasm and motivation associated with competitive games so that theywill derive exercise, team spirit and coordination from these games.

Another object of this invention is to provide handicapped and retardedchildren with needed physical thereapy for their arms and legs byparticipating in these enjoyable games.

Another object of this invention is to provide hobby horses having goodmaneuverability, safe construction features, and low cost factors.

Another object of this invention is to provide auxiliary game devices sothat different games may be played.

Another object of this invention is to provide a practical means forstoring the hobby horses in a small area so that the game area may beused for other games.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide an integratedgame system that utilizes the competitive features of the game itself,the game participants, the game devices, the play area, and thestoragetechnique.

These and other objects and features of the invention are pointed out inthe following discription in terms of the embodiments thereof which areshown in the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view embodying someof the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the invention in a stacking position;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a structure shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a detail view of the invention. FIG. 5 is another detail viewof the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings andmore particularly to FIG. 1, it will be seen that the hobby horse body10, which is made of a durable plastic material, has a seat 12, handgrips l6, and is supported by a pair of upper vertical support posts 18,20. These posts 18, 20 are adjustable by telescoping withincorresponding hollow, lower vertical support posts 26, 32. Both upperand lower posts contain lateral aligning holes 22, 24, 28, 34 foradjustment of the hobby horse to the desired height. The adjusted heightis fixed in position by boltles fastening devices 80 to be describedlater in this specification. In addition, the upper ends of the uppervertical support posts 18, 20 terminate in hollow T-sections 82 withinthe body of the hobby horse for structural support.

The vertical posts 26, 32 are connected to a supporting base frame 40having a front 42 and rear 44 section. Both of these sections 42, 44 aremounted on swivelable casters 48, 50 so that the hobby horse may beeasily maneuvered in all directions during the game. These casters areremovable andmay be replaced by swivelable and therefore, self-aligningice skating structure when the games are played on ice. Additionally,the front section 42 is somewhat narrow so that it does not interferewith the moving feet of the game participant. However, the rear section44 is relatively wide so that the hobby horse structure is verticallystable and will not topple over during the game. In addition, the rearsection 44 has an integral platform 46 that is frictionally surfaced sothat a second child may stand on this platform with one foot and pushthe hobby horse with the other foot during racing or coasting games.

The hand-held, auxiliary stick device 52 is a mallet when polo is playedor a hockey stick when hockey is played. These sticks are made ofplastic or other light weight material. The game component object 54 isa puck when polo or hockey is played and is also made of plastic orother light weight material. When soccer is played the game componentobject 54 is a ball having substantially low resiliency so that it willnot bounce outside the game area when kicked by the game participants.

For the simulated games of polo, hockey and soccer, a pair of goaldevices are used. One of these goals is depicted in FIG. 1. It iscomprised of a rear frame member 56 with hingedly mounted gates 58, 60at each end of the frame 62, 64. The gate opening may be adjusted tovary the difficulty of maneuvering a game component object within thesegoals. At the end of the game these gates fold flat against the rearframe for easy storage.

The stacking structure shown in FIG. 3 provides an efficient means forstacking the hobby horses vertically and horizontally for storage in asmall area so that the game area may be used for other games. In atypical stacking structure that was constructed it was possible to stacktwelve hobby horses very easily in an area of 42 inches by 42 inches.Referring to FIG. 3 it will be seen that the stacking structure iscomprised of vertical bars 72, 74 which'are intersected by horizontalbars 64, 66, 68, which serve to both position and support the hobbyhorses when they are stacked for storage.

A construction element of the hobby horse permits the vertical andhorizontal stacking of the hobby horses on the stacking structure. Thisconstruction element 38 is shown in FIG. 1 which comprises a hollow tubethat extends laterally through the rear section of the body of the horseand is also coupled within the body of the horse to the T-section 82 ofthe upper vertical support post 18 in order to provide structuralstrength. ln addition, this lateral hollow tube 38 has its ends turneddown flush against the body of the horse to eliminate any sharp edgesand also to fasten itself to the horse. A similar hollow tube 39 alsoextends laterally through the front section of the body of the body ofthe horse.

During the storing operation the hobby horses are A mounted on thehorizontal bars 64,66,68,70 by engaging the hollow lateral tubes 38, 39of each horse with two of the horizontal bars. For efficient utilizationof space the horses on top are inverted while the costers of the horseson bottom are used for supporting the entire stacking structure and foreasy manuevering of the stacking structure to the storage area. Therelative positions of the hobby horses during storage are shown in FIG.2. When all the horses are mounted in position the ends of thehorizontal bars are locked by means of a boltless, quick-disconnectdevice 80 having a spring and clasp mechanism. This device 80 is alsoused for locking the upper and lower vertical support posts shown inFIG. 1. The details of this device 80 are shown in FIG. 4. In additionto this quick disconnect feature, this device has smooth edges toprevent injury to children in the area.

An important feature of the game system is the provision of smooth edgesand corners of all game components and elements to prevent injury to thegame participants.

Although one embodiment of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed, various changes in the form and relative arrangements of theparts, which will now appear to those skilled in the art, may be madewithout departing from the scope of the invention. Reference is,therefore, to be had to the appended claims for a definition of thelimits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A multi-game system for children for simulating adult gamescomprising. in combination:

a plurality of wheeled hobby horse means movable in all directionswithin a horizontal plane, said hobby horse means to be ridden by theparticipants of the game and propelled by the pushing action of the feetof said game participants against the ground;

a game component object means, propelled along the ground and receivingenergy by a striking force from said game participant;

a pair of adjustable goal means for receiving said game component objectmeans;

and wherein said hobby horse means further comprises:

a plastic hobby horse body having a seat to support said gameparticipant;

a first adjustable, vertical support post located at lower front portionof said hobby horse body;

a first hollow T-section element connected to upper end ofsaid firstadjustable, vertical support post;

a second adjustable, vertical support post located at lower rear portionof said hobby horse body;

a second hollow T-section element connected to upper end of said secondadjustable vertical support post;

a supporting base connected to said first and second 5 vertical supportposts;

a plurality of wheeled coasters attached to said supporting base so thatsaid hobby horse may move in all directions along the ground; and

a pair of hollow posts extending laterally through the front and rearsections of said body of said hobby horse and engaging first and secondT-sections to permit vertical stacking of said hobby horse by auxiliarystacking means and to provide structural support for said hobby horsebody.

2. A multi-game system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first andsecond adjustable, vertical posts are each comprised of:

ahollow upper post member having apertures in a transverse direction;

a hollow lower post member having apertures in a transverse direction sothat one post member may be telescoped within the other post member andapertures of both post members may be placed in alignment; and

fastening means for engaging said apertures in said upper and lower postmembers so that each vertical support post may be locked at a selectedlevel.

3. A multi-game system in accordance with claim 1 wherein saidsupporting base comprises:

an axial base member disposed in a parallel direction to the body ofsaid hobby horse;

a front base member connected transversely to said axial base memberwherein said front base member is substantially short in a directionperpendicular to said axial base member so as not to interfere with thefeed of said game participants during a game;

a rear base member connected transversely to said axial base memberwherein said rear base member is substantially longer than said frontbase member so that said hobby horse will remain in a stable uprightposition when ridden by said game participants; and

a frictionally surfaced pad attached to the top surface of said rearbase member so that said hobby horse may be used by a standing gameparticipant in addition to the seated game participant for racing,coasting, and other games.

4. A multi-game system in accordance with claim 1 further comprising:

a movable stacking structure for vertical and horizontal stacking ofsaid hobby horses when not in use so that a storage area for said hobbyhorses is substantially reduced and allows the play area to be utilizedfor other games; said stacking structure comprising;

a plurality of parallel horizontal bars engaging said hollow postsextending laterally through said bodies of said hobby horses; and

means for structurally connecting said horizontal bars so that saidhorizontal bars are in a parallel, fixed relationship to each other.

5. A multi-game system in accordance with claim 4 wherein said stackingstructure further comprises a locking device at the ends of saidhorizontal bars so that said hobby horses are retained in position, saidlocking devices further comprised of an integral, quickdisconnect springand clasp mechanism having smooth edges to prevent injury to children inthe game area.

1. A multi-game system for children for simulating adult gamescomprising in combination: a plurality of wheeled hobby horse meansmovable in all directions within a horizontal plane, said hobby horsemeans to be ridden by the participants of the game and propelled by thepushing action of the feet of said game participants against the ground;a game component object means, propelled along the ground and receivingenergy by a striking force from said game participant; a pair ofadjustable goal means for receiving said game component object means;and wherein said hobby horse means further comprises: a plastic hobbyhorse body having a seat to support said game participant; a firstadjustable, vertical support post located at lower front portion of saidhobby horse body; a first hollow T-section element connected to upperend of said first adjustable, vertical support post; a secondadjustable, vertical support post located at lower rear portion of saidhobby horse body; a second hollow T-section element connected to upperend of said second adjustable vertical support post; a supporting baseconnected to said first and second vertical support posts; a pluralityof wheeled coasters attached to said supporting base so that said hobbyhorse may move in all directions along the ground; and a pair of hollowposts extending laterally through the front and rear sections of saidbody of said hobby horse and engaging first And second T-sections topermit vertical stacking of said hobby horse by auxiliary stacking meansand to provide structural support for said hobby horse body.
 2. Amulti-game system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first andsecond adjustable, vertical posts are each comprised of: a hollow upperpost member having apertures in a transverse direction; a hollow lowerpost member having apertures in a transverse direction so that one postmember may be telescoped within the other post member and apertures ofboth post members may be placed in alignment; and fastening means forengaging said apertures in said upper and lower post members so thateach vertical support post may be locked at a selected level.
 3. Amulti-game system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said supportingbase comprises: an axial base member disposed in a parallel direction tothe body of said hobby horse; a front base member connected transverselyto said axial base member wherein said front base member issubstantially short in a direction perpendicular to said axial basemember so as not to interfere with the feed of said game participantsduring a game; a rear base member connected transversely to said axialbase member wherein said rear base member is substantially longer thansaid front base member so that said hobby horse will remain in a stableupright position when ridden by said game participants; and africtionally surfaced pad attached to the top surface of said rear basemember so that said hobby horse may be used by a standing gameparticipant in addition to the seated game participant for racing,coasting, and other games.
 4. A multi-game system in accordance withclaim 1 further comprising: a movable stacking structure for verticaland horizontal stacking of said hobby horses when not in use so that astorage area for said hobby horses is substantially reduced and allowsthe play area to be utilized for other games; said stacking structurecomprising; a plurality of parallel horizontal bars engaging said hollowposts extending laterally through said bodies of said hobby horses; andmeans for structurally connecting said horizontal bars so that saidhorizontal bars are in a parallel, fixed relationship to each other. 5.A multi-game system in accordance with claim 4 wherein said stackingstructure further comprises a locking device at the ends of saidhorizontal bars so that said hobby horses are retained in position, saidlocking devices further comprised of an integral, quick-disconnectspring and clasp mechanism having smooth edges to prevent injury tochildren in the game area.